Automatic opening and closing device

ABSTRACT

An automatic opening-and-closing device can be obtained which can prevent a foreign object from being caught in by detecting the foreign object even if an opening/closing speed of a moving body changes or the foreign object is small. An automatic sliding door device  10  detects that there is an foreign object on a locus of sliding of a door panel  14 , by detecting a pushing reaction force when a pressure sensitive sensor  60  pushes the foreign object at the time of forward sliding of the door panel  14  slides forward. Hence, even if the sliding speed of the door panel  14  changes, or even if the foreign object is small, the foreign object can be detected to thereby prevent the foreign object from being caught in the door. Moreover, with the automatic sliding door device  10 , a code  80  is passed through inside of the door panel  14  and connected to a lower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor  60  via a circular hole  110  formed at a lower end portion of the door panel  14 . Hence, the detection range on the upper end side of the door panel  14  can be made wider, and management of the code  80  at the time of assembly becomes easy.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an automatic opening-and-closing deviceapplied, for example, as an electric sliding door of a vehicle or thelike.

BACKGROUND ART

In a vehicle such as a caravan, a van, a recreational vehicle or thelike, a so-called sliding door is sometimes adopted, in which a doorpanel is slid for opening/closing along the forward and backwarddirection of the vehicle. Some of these sliding doors are automaticsliding doors wherein the opening/closing operation (that is, sliding ofthe door panel) is automated by means of a driving force of drivingmeans such as a motor or the like, and for example, a driver can open orclose the rear seat door panel while sitting on a driver's seat.

Incidentally, with a conventional automatic sliding door device, whensliding speed of the door panel decreases due to a foreign object caughtin a door panel while closing the door panel, the foreign object caughttherein has been detected by detecting overload acting on a motor. Thatis to say, catching of a foreign object has conventionally beendetectable by means of a change in engine speed of the motorcorresponding to a change in the sliding speed of the door panel.

Generally, however, if somebody tries to slide a door panel that is in astopped state or to stop the door panel during sliding, since the doorpanel tries to maintain its state (that is, the stopped state if it isin a stopped state, or the sliding state if it is in the middle ofsliding) due to inertia based on its own weight, overload acts on themotor. Therefore, it is not possible to detect that a foreign object iscaught just after starting sliding (that is, just after starting todrive the motor or during acceleration of the driving speed), or justbefore stopping sliding (that is, during deceleration of the drivingspeed of the motor or just before stopping driving), and normally, in astate of just after starting sliding or just before stopping sliding, amask processing is effected in which even if overload acting on themotor is detected, it is not judged that a foreign object is caught.Hence, if a thin foreign object or a foreign object having an overallsmall size is caught in the door panel just before being completelyclosed, for example, the detection of this caught foreign object is verydifficult.

Moreover, in a state in which a vehicle inclines forward or backward, asfor the door panel, a component of the sliding speed is separated into ahorizontal direction and a vertical direction, and the component in thevertical direction of the sliding speed is, needless to say, affected bythe influence of gravity. Therefore, for example, in lower-front statewhere a front portion of the vehicle is lower than a rear portion of thevehicle, gravity tends to pull the door panel forward, hence if someonetries to close the door panel in this state, the sliding speed of thedoor panel is accelerated. On the contrary, in a lower-rear state wherethe front portion of the vehicle is higher than the rear portion of thevehicle, gravity tends to pull the door panel backward, hence if someonetries to close the door panel in this state, the sliding speed of thedoor panel is decelerated. Therefore, in such states, there is apossibility that though a foreign object is not caught, overload acts onthe motor, and it is erroneously detected as a caught state, or thatthough a foreign object is caught, overload is not caused and catchingof a foreign object is not detected. Thus, it is required to providecorrection means for correcting the influence of gravity depending uponthe slanting state of the vehicle, resulting in cost increase.

In view of the above situation, it is an object of the present inventionto obtain an automatic opening-and-closing device which can prevent aforeign object from becoming caught, by detecting a foreign object, evenwhen the opening/closing speed of a moving body such as a door panel orthe like changes, or even when a foreign object is small.

DICLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

To attain the above object, an automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to claim 1 comprises: a moving body which moves foropening/closing substantially horizontally by means of a driving forcefrom driving means; a pressure sensitive sensor provided along thevertical direction on a moving direction side end portion of the movingbody, for detecting a pressure in the direction opposite to the movingdirection; control means for controlling drive of the driving means in astate in which the pressure sensitive sensor detects the pressure in thedirection opposite to the moving direction; and connection meansconnected to a lower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor forconnecting the pressure sensitive sensor to the control means.

The present invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 1, theconnection means is passed through the inside of the moving body, and isconnected to a lower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor,passing through a through hole formed towards a lower end of a movingdirection side end portion of the moving body.

The present invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 2, themoving body is provided with a window glass, and the lower end portionof the pressure sensitive sensor is located at a position lower than alower end portion of the window glass.

The present invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 1, the lowerend portion of the pressure sensitive sensor is curved toward the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body, and the curved portion ispassed through a through hole formed towards a lower end of the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body to thereby be disposedwithin the moving body, and is connected to the connection means withinthe moving body.

The present invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 4, themoving body is provided with a window glass, and the lower end portionof the pressure sensitive sensor is located at a position lower than alower end portion of the window glass.

The present invention according to claim 6 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 1, thepressure sensitive sensor comprises: a hollow cover portion elasticallydeformable due to an external force having a predetermined size or more,longitudinal along the vertical direction of the moving body; and aplurality of lengthy electrodes disposed within the cover portion, alongthe longitudinal direction of the cover portion, separated from eachother in the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of thecover portion, and connected to each other in series, and deformed withthe elastic deformation of the cover portion.

The present invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 6, theconnection means is passed through the inside of the moving body, and isconnected to at least two electrodes of the plurality of electrodespulled out from a lower end portion of the cover portion, passingthrough a through hole formed towards a lower end of the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body.

The present invention according to claim 8 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 7, themoving body is provided with a window glass, and the lower end portionof the pressure sensitive sensor is located at a position lower than alower end portion of the window glass.

The present invention according to claim 9 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 6, the lowerend portion of the cover portion is curved toward the moving directionside end portion of the moving body, and is passed through a throughhole formed toward a lower end of the moving direction side end portionof the moving body, the plurality of electrodes being pulled out withinthe moving body, with at least two of the plurality of electrodes pulledout being connected to the connection means.

The present invention according to claim 10 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 9, themoving body is provided with a window glass, and the lower end portionof the pressure sensitive sensor is located at a position lower than alower end portion of the window glass.

The present invention according to claim 11 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 6, theconnection means is disposed along the moving direction side end portionof the moving body, in which a lower end portion of which is connectedto at least two electrode wires of the plurality of electrodes pulledout from a lower end portion of the cover portion, while the other upperend portion passes through a moving direction side end portion of themoving body between the upper end portion and the lower end portion ofthe cover portion, the connection means being connected to the controlmeans via the inside of the moving body.

The present invention according to claim 12 is characterized in that theautomatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 11 includes asupport means comprising: a holding portion for holding the coverportion along the moving direction side end portion of the moving body;and a support portion longitudinal along the moving direction side endportion of the moving body, provided on the opposite side of the coverportion via the holding portion, and fixed to the moving direction sideend portion of the moving body, in which an accommodating portion isformed for accommodating inside thereof the connection meanslongitudinal along the moving direction side end portion of the movingbody and having one end connected to the at least two electrodes pulledout from the lower end portion of the cover portion.

The present invention according to claim 13 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 12, theconnection means is embedded in advance in the accommodating portion,and the connection means is integral with the support means.

The present invention according to claim 14 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 12, a coveris provided so as to correspond to longitudinal direction end portionsof the plurality of electrodes, and covers a portion of the connectionmeans exposed from the accommodating portion.

The present invention according to claim 15 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 12, themoving body is provided with a window glass, and the connection means ispassed through the moving body at a position lower than the windowglass.

The present invention according to claim 16 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 1, theconnection means is disposed along the moving direction side end portionof the moving body, and one end is connected to the pressure sensitivesensor, and an upper end side passes through the moving direction sideend portion of the moving body between an upper end portion and a lowerend portion of the pressure sensitive sensor and is connected to thecontrol means via the inside of the moving body.

The present invention according to claim 17 is characterized in that theautomatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 16 includessupport means comprising: a holding portion for holding the pressuresensitive sensor along the moving direction side end portion of themoving body; and a support portion longitudinal along the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body, provided on the oppositeside of the pressure sensitive sensor via the holding portion, and fixedto the moving direction side end portion of the moving body, in which anaccommodating portion longitudinal along the moving direction side endportion of the moving body is formed for accommodating inside thereof aportion of the connection means.

The present invention according to claim 18 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 17, theconnection means is provided in the accommodating portion in a buriedstate beforehand, the connection means being integrated with the supportmeans.

The present invention according to claim 19 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 17, a coveris provided, so as to correspond to an end portion in the longitudinaldirection of the plurality of electrodes, for covering a portion exposedfrom the accommodating portion of the connection means.

The present invention according to claim 20 is characterized in that inthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 16, themoving body is provided with a window glass, and the connection means ispulled out from the holding portion between a lower end portion of thesupport means and a lower end portion of the window glass to therebypass through the moving body.

According to the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim1, the pressure sensitive sensor is provided at the moving directionside end portion of the moving body, and when the moving body moves foropening/closing by means of the driving force of the driving means, ifthere is a foreign object on the locus of opening/closing movement, thepressure sensitive sensor moving together with the moving body pushesthe foreign object. The pressure sensitive sensor senses a pushingreaction force (i.e., pressure) from the foreign object at this time,making it possible to confirm that there is a foreign object on thelocus of opening/closing movement of the moving body. Moreover, when thepressure sensitive sensor senses the existence of a foreign object, thecontrol means performs the drive control of the driving means, tothereby stop the driving means or reverse-drive the driving means in theclosing direction. As described above, with the present automaticopening-and-closing device, since the existence of a foreign object onthe locus of opening/closing movement of the moving body is confirmed bysensing the pushing reaction force at the time when the foreign objectcontacts the pressure sensitive sensor, even when the moving speed ofthe moving body is changing, the existence of the foreign object can beconfirmed, making it possible to prevent a foreign object from becomingcaught by the moving body.

In the automatic opening-and-closing device, the pressure sensitivesensor is provided along the vertical direction of the moving directionside end portion of the moving body, and the connection means forconnecting the pressure sensitive sensor and the control means isconnected to the lower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor.Therefore, for example, when the present automatic opening-and-closingdevice is used for opening and closing a door, the connected portion ofthe pressure sensitive sensor and the connection means is located at aposition lower than that of a line of sight of a person passing at theside of the door (that is, the moving body) in an open state, andtherefore, the external appearance of the door is improved.

Further, the upper half of a person's body is wider than their feet bythe amount of the width of the shoulders. Thus, if a door which wasbeing closed were to contact the body of a person passing through at theside of the door, first, the door would contact the upper half of theperson. Here, in the present automatic opening-and-closing device, theconnection means is connected at the lower end portion of pressuresensitive sensor of the moving body (i.e., the door), and thus, theupper end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor can be made toapproach as much as possible the upper end portion of the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body. A non-sensing range ofthe pressure sensitive sensor at the upper end portion side of themoving direction side end portion of the moving body can be made smallor eliminated. Thus, in particular, the catching of a person's body canbe effectively prevented.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 2, theconnection means passes through the interior portion of the moving body.Further, the connection means passes through a through hole formed atthe lower end side of the moving direction side end portion of themoving body, and is connected to the pressure sensitive sensor. As aresult, the portion of the connection means exposed at the exterior ofthe moving body can be made extremely small or can be eliminatedaltogether. The external appearance improves, and the connection meansdoes not contact an obstacle while the moving body is moving, so thatthe occurrence of drawbacks such as disconnection or the like of thepressure sensitive sensor and the connection means can be prevented.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 3, thelower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor is located at aposition lower than the lower end portion of the window glass providedat the moving body. Thus, the connection means passes beneath the windowglass and is connected to the lower end portion of the pressuresensitive sensor. As a result, the window glass does not impede the workfor connecting the connection means and the pressure sensitive sensor,and the connection means does not traverse the window glass.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 4, in astate in which the lower end side of the pressure sensitive sensor iscurved toward a through hole formed in the lower end side of the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body, the lower end side of thepressure sensitive sensor passes through the through hole and isdisposed within the moving body, and the pressure sensitive sensor andthe connection means are connected within the moving body. In this way,by connecting the pressure sensitive sensor and the connection meanswithin the moving body, the connected portion of the pressure sensitivesensor and the connection means is shielded by the moving body, and isnot exposed at the exterior. Further, the position, at which theconnected portion of the pressure sensitive sensor and the connectionmeans is disposed with respect to the external force applied to themoving direction side end portion of the moving body, is fundamentallyat the side opposite the pressure sensitive sensor with respect to themoving direction side end portion of the moving body. Thus, externalforce is not applied to the connected portion. Accordingly, no foreignobject contacts the connection means, and disconnection or the likecaused thereby can be prevented.

Incidentally, here, “curving” may be curving of the elasticallydeformable pressure sensitive sensor, or may be forming the pressuresensitive sensor in advance in a curved configuration (i.e., thepressure sensitive sensor may be a configuration which is already curvedin a state in which no external force or the like is applied thereto).However, in a case in which the pressure sensitive sensor iselastically-deformably curved, it is necessary that the curving be at acurvature of an extent such that the pressure sensitive sensor does notsense the external force accompanying this curving or the restoringforce by which the pressure sensitive sensor itself attempts to returnto its original configuration.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 5, thelower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor is located at aposition lower than the lower end portion of the window glass providedat the moving body. Thus, the connection means passes beneath the windowglass and is connected to the lower end portion of the pressuresensitive sensor. As a result, the window glass does not impede the workfor connecting the connection means and the pressure sensitive sensor,and the connection means does not traverse the window glass.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 6, theplurality of elongated electrodes are disposed within the elongatedouter cover portion in a state of being set apart from one another. Whenan external force applied to the moving direction side end portion ofthe moving body is applied to the outer cover portion and due to thisexternal force the outer cover portion elastically deforms and the outercover portion collapses, the electrodes at the interior of the outercover portion deform together with the outer cover portion. Due to theouter cover portion elastically deforming to the extent that the outercover portion collapses, at least two electrodes of the plurality ofelectrodes contact each other and short circuit. Because the pluralityof electrodes are connected together in series, due to the shortcircuiting, the current value of the current flowing through theelectrodes or the electrical resistance or the like changes. Bydetecting this change, it can be sensed whether an external force isapplied to the outer cover portion, i.e., it can be sensed whether anexternal force is applied to the moving direction side end portion ofthe moving body.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 7, theconnection means is connected to at least two electrodes pulled out fromthe lower end portion of the outer cover portion, among the plurality ofelectrodes disposed within the outer cover portion. In this way, currentflows from the connection means to the electrodes, and further, currentflowing through the electrodes flows to the connection means.

By the way, in the present automatic opening-and-closing device, theconnection means passes through the through hole formed at the lower endside of the moving direction side end portion of the moving body, and isconnected to the aforementioned electrodes. As a result, the portion ofthe connection means which is exposed at the exterior of the moving bodyis extremely small or altogether non-existent. The external appearanceimproves, and the connection means does not contact an obstacle whilethe moving body is moving. Occurrence of drawbacks such as disconnectionor the like of the pressure sensitive sensor and the connection meanscan be prevented.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 8, thelower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor is located at aposition lower than the lower end portion of the window glass providedat the moving body. Thus, the connection means passes beneath the windowglass and is connected to the lower end portion of the pressuresensitive sensor. As a result, the window glass does not impede the workfor connecting the connection means and the pressure sensitive sensor,and the connection means does not traverse the window glass.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 9, in astate in which the lower end side of the outer cover portion is curvedtoward a through hole formed in the lower end side of the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body, the lower end side of theouter cover portion passes through the through hole and is disposedwithin the moving body, and within the moving body, the connection meansis connected with at least two of the electrodes pulled out from thelower end portion of the outer cover portion. In this way, by connectingthe connection means and the electrodes within the moving body, theconnected portion of the electrodes and the connection means is shieldedby the moving body, and is not exposed at the exterior. Further, theposition, at which the connected portion of the electrodes and theconnection means is disposed with respect to the external force appliedto the moving direction side end portion of the moving body, isfundamentally at the opposite side with respect to the moving directionside end portion of the moving body. Thus, external force is not appliedto the connected portion. Accordingly, no foreign object contacts theconnection means, and disconnection or the like caused thereby can beprevented.

Incidentally, here, “curving” may be curving of the elasticallydeformable outer cover portion, or may be forming the outer coverportion in advance in a curved configuration (i.e., the outer coverportion may be a configuration which is already curved in a state inwhich no external force or the like is applied thereto). However, in acase in which the outer cover portion is elastically-deformably curved,it is necessary that the curving be at a curvature of an extent suchthat the electrodes do not contact one another due to the external forceaccompanying this curving or the restoring force by which the outercover portion itself attempts to return to its original configuration.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 10,since the lower end portion of the outer cover portion is located at aposition lower than the lower end portion of the window glass providedon the moving body, the connection means passes beneath the window glassand is connected to the lower end portion of the pressure sensitivesensor. As a result, the window glass does not impede the work forconnecting the connection means and the electrodes, and the connectionmeans does not traverse the window glass.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 11, theconnection means, one end of which is connected to at least twoelectrodes among the electrodes which are pulled out from the lower endof the outer cover body, is extended upward along the moving directionside end portion of the moving body, passes through the moving directionside end portion of the moving body between the upper end and the lowerend of the moving body, passes through the interior of the moving body,and is connected to the control means.

Here, because the connection means passes through the moving directionside end portion of the moving body and is disposed within the movingbody, the portion of the connection means exposed at the exterior of themoving body is small. The external appearance improves, and theconnection means does not contact an obstacle while the moving body ismoving. The occurrence of drawbacks such as disconnection or the like ofthe pressure sensitive sensor and the connection means can be prevented.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 12, oneportion of the connection means, whose one end is connected to at leasttwo electrodes of the electrodes pulled out from the lower end of theouter cover portion, is accommodated in the accommodating portionprovided at the support portion of the support means and is guided tothe upper end side in the longitudinal direction of the pressuresensitive sensor. Accordingly a region, other than one longitudinaldirection end portion of the connection means and the portion nearestthereto, is not exposed to the exterior. Therefore, the externalappearance at the sensor mounting position can be improved even more,and disconnection of the connection means due to the connection meanscontacting a foreign object or the like can be prevented.

Furthermore, the above-described accommodating portion is formed at thesupport portion of the support means (i.e., the support portion and theaccommodating portion are basically the same). Therefore, it is notnecessary to form a special space for disposing (i.e., training) theconnection means or a special region, other than the support portion,for supporting the connection means. Thus, the pressure sensitive sensorcan be made compact.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 13, theconnection means is embedded in advance in the accommodating portion ofthe support means (i.e., the connection means is embedded in advance inthe support portion), and is made integral with the support portion.Thus, there is no need for a process for passing the connection meansinto the accommodating portion at the time the pressure sensitive sensoris mounted to the sensor mounting position, and the manufacturing costbecomes less expensive.

Incidentally, in the present invention, when the connection means isembedded into the accommodating portion, ones of longitudinal directionends of the electrodes and the corresponding longitudinal direction endsof the connection means may be connected in advance, or may not beconnected in advance.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 14, thecover is provided in correspondence with the longitudinal direction endportions of the plurality of electrodes, and the cover covers theportion of the connection means which is exposed from the accommodatingportion. Thus, the external appearance at the sensor mounting positioncan be improved even more, and contact between an exposed portion of theconnection means and a foreign object can be reliably prevented, anddisconnection of the connection means can be reliably prevented evenmore.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 15, theconnection means passes through the moving direction side end portion ofthe moving body at a position lower than the window glass provided atthe moving body. Thus, the window glass does not impede the work forconnecting the connection means and the pressure sensitive sensor, andfurther, the connection means does not traverse the window glass.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 16, theconnection means whose one end is connected to the lower end portion ofthe pressure sensitive sensor is extended upward along the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body, passes through the movingdirection side end portion of the moving body between the upper end andthe lower end of the moving body, passes through the interior portion ofthe moving body, and is connected to the control means.

Here, since the connection means passes through the moving directionside end portion of the moving body and is disposed within the movingbody, a portion of the connection means exposed at the exterior of themoving body becomes small, thus improving the external appearance. Theconnection means does not contact an obstacle during movement of themoving body, and drawbacks such as disconnection or the like of thepressure sensitive sensor and the connection means can be prevented.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 17, oneportion of the connection means connected to the pressure sensitivesensor is accommodated in the accommodating portion provided at thesupport portion of the support means and is guided to the longitudinaldirection upper end side of the pressure sensitive sensor. Therefore, aregion, other than one longitudinal direction end portion of theconnection means and the portion closest thereto, is not exposed to theexterior. As a result, the external appearance at the sensor mountingposition can be further improved, and disconnection of the connectionmeans due to the connection means contacting a foreign object or thelike can be prevented.

Furthermore, at the above-described accommodating portion, the supportportion of the sensor holding member is formed (that is, the supportportion and the accommodating portion are basically the same).Accordingly, there is no need for a special space for disposing(training) the connection means, nor is there a need to form at thesupport means a particular region, other than the support portion, forsupporting the connection means. Thus, the pressure sensitive sensor canbe made compact.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 18, theconnection means is embedded in advance in the accommodating portion ofthe support means (i.e., the connection means is embedded in advance inthe support portion), and is made integral with the support portion.Thus, there is no need for a process for passing the connection meansinto the accommodating portion at the time the pressure sensitive sensoris mounted to the sensor mounting position, and the manufacturing costbecomes less expensive.

Incidentally, in the present invention, when the connection means isembedded into the accommodating portion, ones of longitudinal directionends of the electrodes and the corresponding longitudinal direction endsof the connection means may be connected in advance, or may not beconnected in advance.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 19, thecover is provided in correspondence with the longitudinal direction endportions of the plurality of electrodes, and the cover covers theportion of the connection means which is exposed from the accommodatingportion. Thus, the external appearance at the sensor mounting positioncan be improved even more, and contact between an exposed portion of theconnection means and a foreign object can be reliably prevented, anddisconnection of the connection means can be reliably prevented evenmore.

With the automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 20, thelower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor pulls out theconnection means from the holding portion below the lower end portion ofthe window glass provided at the moving body, and the connection meanspulled out from the holding member passes through the moving directionside end portion of the moving body, and is passed through the interiorportion of the moving body below the window glass. As a result, thewindow glass does not impede the work for connecting the connectionmeans and the pressure sensitive sensor, and the connection means doesnot traverse the window glass.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view as seen from inside of a vehicular doorpanel (moving body) to which an automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to a first embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of the vehiculardoor panel (moving body) to which the automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to the first embodiment of the present invention isapplied.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a pressure sensitive sensor.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a structure of the pressuresensitive sensor.

FIG. 5 is a planar sectional view in which a vicinity of a lower endportion of the pressure sensitive sensor is enlarged.

FIG. 6 is a back side sectional view in which a vicinity of the lowerend portion of the pressure sensitive sensor is enlarged.

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram of the pressure sensitive sensor.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view as seen from the rear of a vehicle to whichthe automatic opening-and-closing device according to the firstembodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a drive mechanism of the door panel(moving body).

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of the automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view as seen from the front of the vehicle towhich the automatic opening-and-closing device according to the firstembodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a modification of a mold and showing astate where the sensor body mounted with the mold passes through aholding portion of a protector.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state where the sensor body mounted withthe mold is pressed into the holding portion of the protector.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a state where the sensor body mounted withthe mold is being inserted into the holding portion of the protector.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing a main part of an automaticopening-and-closing device according to a second embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 16 is a sectional view showing a main part of the automaticopening-and-closing device according to the second embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 17 is a sectional view showing a main part of an automaticopening-and-closing device according to a third embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 18 is a sectional view showing a main part of an automaticopening-and-closing device according to a fourth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a main part of an automaticopening-and-closing device according to a fifth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 20 is a sectional view showing a main part of the automaticopening-and-closing device according to the fifth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view in which a vicinity of end portions of apressure sensitive sensor and a support means is enlarged.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view showing a main part of the automaticopening-and-closing device according to the sixth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing a modification example of a mainpart of the automatic opening-and-closing device according to the sixthembodiment of the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

<First Embodiment>

FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of a vehicle 12 to which an automaticsliding door device 10 is applied as an automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Asshown in this figure, the vehicle 12 is provided with a door panel 14 asa moving body. The door panel 14 is formed such that it can be fitted inan opening 20 formed on a side wall 18 of a vehicle body 16, for use bya passenger getting on or off the rear seat (not shown), and such thatin a state where the door panel 14 is fitted in the opening 20 to closethe opening 20, an outside surface of the door panel 14 becomesapproximately flush with an outside surface of the side wall 18.

At a top end portion of the door panel 14, a door frame 116 in a roughlyU-shaped form having an opening facing downward is integrally formed,and forms a window frame of a window glass 118 provided on the doorpanel 14.

Also, as shown in FIG. 8, at a bottom portion of the door panel 14, abracket 22 extended inward in the transverse direction of the vehicle isintegrally formed. As shown in FIG. 9, a roller 24 is axially supportedat a tip end of the bracket 22, and abuts against an outside surface inthe vehicle width direction of a guide rail provided on a back side of afloor panel (not shown) of the vehicle 12. The roller 24 can move alongthe forward and backward direction of the vehicle 12, while rolling dueto friction with the guide rail 26. As shown in FIG. 9. however, anouter end portion in the vehicle width direction of the guide rail 26slants toward the inside in the vehicle width direction on the front endside. By the roller 24 rolling along the slanted portion, the roller 24moves inward in the vehicle width direction while moving toward thefront of the vehicle 12. Thereby, the door panel 14 sliding along theforward and backward direction of the vehicle 12 outside in the vehiclewidth direction of the side wall 18 shifts inward in the vehicle widthdirection to thereby fit into the opening 20. On the contrary, theroller 24 moves outward in the vehicle width direction while movingtoward the rear side of the vehicle 12, and thereby, the door panel 14fitted into the opening 20 moves outward in the vehicle width directionof the side wall 18 to thereby be able to slide along the forward andbackward direction of the vehicle 12.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 9, a pulley 28 and a drive roller 30, whichrotate around an axis in the vertical direction of the vehicle 12, areprovided towards the inside in the vehicle width direction of the guiderail 26, and an endless belt 32 is entrained between them. To theendless belt 32 is fixed the above-described bracket 22, and when thebracket 22 moves due to the rotation of the endless belt 32, the roller24 rolls along the guide rail 26, and further, the door panel 14 moves.

The drive roller 30 is connected to a slide actuator 34 (see FIG. 8)disposed on the back side of the floor panel, and the endless belt 32rotates by means of a driving force of a slide motor 40 (see FIG. 10)provided in the slide actuator 34. Also, as shown in FIG. 10, the slideactuator 34 includes a slide driver 38 structuring control means. Theslide motor 40 is electrically connected to a computer 36 structuringthe control means via the slide driver 38, and is also electricallyconnected to an operation switch 52 (see FIG. 8) provided in thevicinity of a driver's seat in the vehicle 12 via the computer 36. Byoperating the operation switch 52 to transmit a predetermined signal tothe computer 36, the slide actuator 34 is operated or stopped to therebyslide (move to open/close) the door panel 14.

As shown in FIG. 10, the slide actuator 34 includes a position detectiondevice 44. The position detection device 44 is provided so as tocorrespond to any of a rotation axis, an output axis, or a reductiongear between the rotation axis and the output axis (these are all notshown), so that the amount the rotation axis, output axis, or reductiongear rotates from a point in time that the slide motor 40 starts drivingcan be detected.

The rotation of the rotation axis of the slide motor 40 described aboveis transmitted to the output axis via the reduction gear, and the driveroller 30 (see FIG. 9) rotates with the rotation of the output axis torotate the endless belt 32, to thereby slide the door panel 14.Therefore, the amount the door panel 14 slides is proportional to theamount the output axis rotates, and the amount the output axis rotatesis also proportional to the amount the reduction gear rotates and therotation axis rotate. Hence, the amount of the door panel 14 slides canbe calculated by measuring the amount the rotation axis rotates from thetime of starting the slide motor 40.

As one example of a structure of the position detection device 44, therecan be mentioned a structure in which a plurality of slits are formed ina turntable rotating with the rotation axis, penetrating therethroughalong the thickness direction thereof, around the rotation axis everypredetermined angle, and a light-emitting element and a light-receivingelement are arranged with the turntable therebetween, so that only whenthe turntable rotates and the slit faces the light-emitting element, thelight emitted from the light-emitting element passes through the slitand is received by the light-receiving element. The amount the rotationaxis rotates is calculated by counting the number of times that light ismade incident at the light-receiving element. Moreover, there is anotherstructure in which one of sliding contacts is brought into contact witha conductive board such as a metal board which rotates with the rotationaxis, and the other sliding contact is disposed so as to be able tocontact a conductive pulse piece formed in a protruding state from theouter periphery of the conductive board radially every predeterminedangle around the rotation axis, so that when the conductive boardrotates and the pulse piece is brought into contact with the othersliding contact, both sliding contacts become conductive via the pulsepiece and the conductive board, and the amount the rotation axis rotatesis calculated by counting the number of times that the sliding contactsare conductive.

Moreover, with the present embodiment, the structure of the positiondetection device 44 is such that it detects the amount of the rotationaxis of the slide motor 40 rotates, but the structure of the positiondetection device 44 is not limited thereto, and the structure may be anystructure so long as the position of the door panel 14 is directly orindirectly detected by the position detection device 44. As one exampleof a structure for detecting the position of the door panel 14, forexample, the following structure may be considered: a light-emittingelement is provided inside of the door panel 14, and a light-receivingelement is provided at a position that faces the light-emitting elementwhen the door panel 14 slides to a predetermined position on the sidewall 18 of the vehicle body 16, so that when the light-receiving elementreceives the light emitted from the light-emitting element, it isdetected that the door panel 14 has slid up to the predeterminedposition.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11, a bracket 46 extended inward inthe vehicle width direction is disposed in a vertical direction middleportion and in an upper end portion of the door panel 14. A roller (notshown) is provided at the tip end of each of these brackets, and each ofthe rollers comes into a guide groove 50 disposed in a proper positionof the vehicle 12 in a state of being prevented from coming off, andmoves along the guide rail 48. That is to say, the door panel 14 issupported on the side wall 18 of the vehicle body 16 via the guide rail48 and the brackets 46, and moves while being guided by the guide rails26 and 48 by means of a driving force of the slide actuator 34 describedabove.

Moreover, like the guide rail 26, the front end side of the guide rail48 slants inward in the vehicle width direction. In this slantedportion, the roller of each of the brackets 46 moves inward in thevehicle width direction while moving towards the front of the vehicle 12along the guide groove 50 of the guide rail 48, or moves outward in thevehicle width direction while moving towards the rear of the vehicle 12.At the time of this movement, the door panel 14 moves inward or outwardin the vehicle width direction.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, the automatic sliding door device 10comprises a closure actuator 56 disposed within the door panel 14. Theclosure actuator 56 is disposed within the door panel 14, and as shownin FIG. 10, comprises a closure driver 58 structuring control means anda closure motor 59 as driving means. The closure driver 58 iselectrically connected to the above-described computer 36, and in astate where the door panel 14 is slid due to driving force of the slidemotor 40 in the direction of closing the opening 20 (i.e., toward thefront of the vehicle 12), when the above-described position detectiondevice 44 detects sliding of the door panel 14 up to just before thedoor panel 14 completely closes the opening 20, the computer 36 operatesthe closure driver 58 so as to supply power to the closure motor 59 froma power supply 42 to thereby drive the closure motor 59. Thereby, whenthe door panel 14 is fitted into the opening 20, the closure motor 59operates a lock mechanism (not shown) of the door panel 14, such as alatch or the like provided in the door panel 14, and guides the doorpanel 14 to a predetermined position where the door panel 14 can belocked by the lock mechanism within the opening 20.

That is to say, with the automatic sliding door device 10, the structureis such that the door panel 14 is basically slid (moved foropening/closing) by the slide motor 40 (the slide actuator 34), but onlyat the time just before completely closing the door panel 14, the doorpanel 14 is moved by the closure motor 59 (the closure actuator 56).

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 11, a pressure sensitive sensor 60is provided in the vicinity of a front end portion of the door panel 14,with a longitudinal side thereof being along the vertical direction ofthe vehicle 12. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the pressure sensitive sensor60 comprises a cover portion 62 that structures a sensor body 61 formedin a lengthy shape with an elastic material having nonconductivity, suchas a rubber, a soft synthetic resin or the like. A cross hole 64 havinga section in a cross shape (see FIG. 3) is formed within the coverportion 62 along the longitudinal direction of the cover portion 62. Thecross hole 64 gradually changes orientation around the center of thecover portion 62 along the longitudinal direction of the cover portion62. Moreover, electrodes 66, 68, 70 and 72 structuring the sensor body61 together with the cover portion 62 are provided in a lengthy stripshape having flexibility within the cover portion 62, by intertwiningconductive fine wires such as copper wires or the like. These electrodes66 to 72 are disposed in a helical form along the cross hole 64,separated from each other due to the cross hole 64 in the vicinity ofthe center of the cross hole 64, and integrally secured to an innerperipheral portion of the cross hole 64. Therefore, the electrodes 66 to72 are bent as the cover portion 62 is elastically deformed, andspecifically, when the cover portion 62 is elastically deformed to adegree that the cross hole 64 is collapsed, the electrodes 66 to 72 arebent, and the electrode 66 or the electrode 70 is brought into contactwith the electrode 68 or the electrode 72 to thereby be short-circuited.When the cover portion 62 restores its original shape, the electrodes 66to 72 also restore their respective original shapes.

Also as shown in FIG. 5, at an end portion in the longitudinal directionof the cover portion 62, a support member 86 is inserted. The supportmember 86 is formed approximately in a plate form with an insulative andsoft synthetic resin, and a resistor 74 is disposed on an outsideportion of the cover portion 62, which is also on an obverse sidethereof. Also a plurality of walls 88 are arranged in a standingcondition on the face of a portion more towards the cover portion 62than the resistor 74 of the support member 86. Between these walls 88are arranged lower end portions of the electrodes 68, 70 and leads 76,78 pulled out from the resistor 74. Also, between the walls 88, thereare arranged a pair of caulking pieces 92 formed by a metal platematerial.

The electrode 68 and the lead 76 are arranged between one of the walls88, 88 so that end portions thereof face each other along thelongitudinal direction, and are held in a state in which they arewrapped up in one of the caulked caulking piece 92 and secured by meansof welding. Also, the electrode 70 and the lead 78 are arranged betweenthe other walls 88, 88 so that end portions thereof face each otheralong the longitudinal direction, and are held in a state in which theyare wrapped up in the other caulked caulking piece 92 and secured bymeans of welding. Thereby, the electrode 68 and the electrode 70 areelectrically connected via the resistor 74.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, a plurality of walls 90 arearranged in a standing condition on the backside of the support member86. Between these walls 90, there are arranged lower ends of theelectrodes 66, 72 and end portions of a pair of leads 82, 84 of a code80 serving as connection means. Also, a pair of caulking pieces 92formed by a metal plate material are disposed between the walls 90, 90like for the walls 88, 88.

The electrode 66 and the lead 82 are arranged between one of the walls90, 90 so that end portions thereof face each other along thelongitudinal direction, and are held in a state in which they arewrapped up in one of the caulked caulking piece 92 and secured by meansof welding. Also, the electrode 72 and the lead 84 are arranged betweenthe other walls 90, 90 so that the end portions thereof face each otheralong the longitudinal direction, and are held in a state in which theyare wrapped up in the other caulked caulking piece 92 and secured bymeans of welding.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, a mold 108 is arranged aroundthe support member 86. The mold 108 is formed by an insulative syntheticresin material or a rubber material, so as to seal the lower end portionof the cover portion 62 and to enclose the support member 86 therein.Also, the mold 108 goes into a gap between respective members, such asthe support member 86 and the resistor 74, or the like, and holds eachmember from outside thereof. Therefore, even if a foreign object such asa drop of water attaches to the vicinity of the lower end of the coverportion 62, the foreign object such as a drop of water does not enterinside the cover portion 62, and the foreign object does not attach to alower end of the electrodes 66 to 72 or the like.

Furthermore, though not shown in detail, a support member 86 is providedat an upper end portion of the cover portion 62. However, this supportmember 86 towards the top is not provided with a resistor 74. Also, anupper end portion of the electrode 66 and an upper end portion of theelectrode 70 are electrically connected by caulking pieces 92 and bywelding, as for the lower end portion of each of the electrodes 66 to72, on the surface of the support member 86 towards the top, and anupper end portion of the electrode 68 and an upper end portion of theelectrode 72 are electrically connected by caulking piece 92 and bywelding on the backside of the support member 86. Also, on an upper endportion of the cover portion 62, a mold 108 is arranged around thesupport member 86, and an upper end portion of the cover portion 62 issealed by the mold 108. The support member 86 is enclosed in the mold108.

As shown in a circuit diagram of FIG. 7, the electrodes 66 and 72 areconnected to the power supply via the code 80, and the electric currentfrom the power supply flows from the electrode 66, through the electrode70, the resistor 74, and the electrode 68 to the electrode 72. When thecover portion 62 is elastically deformed to a degree that the coverportion 62 is collapsed and any one of the electrodes 66 to 72 isbrought into contact with another of the electrodes to thereby beshort-circuited, the current does not flow in the resistor 74. Hence,the resistance value of the whole circuit decreases to increase thecurrent value. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, the current flowing out of theelectrode 72 is to return to the power supply via a current detectionelement 106 which transmits a signal when it detects a current equal toor larger than a predetermined value. If anyone of the electrodes 66 to72 is brought into contact with another of the electrodes and isshort-circuited, and thereby the current increases, a signal istransmitted from the current detection element 106, and this signal isreceived by the computer 36 (see FIG. 10) electrically connected to thecurrent detection element 106.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the leads 82 and 84 of the code80 connected to the lower end portions of the electrodes 66 and 72 (seeFIG. 4) are extended from a lower end portion of the mold 108, pulledinside of the door panel 14 (to be more specific, between an outer plate112 and an inner plate 114, which structure the door panel 14), througha circular hole 110 formed at a position lower than a lower end portionof the pressure sensitive sensor 60 at a front end portion of the doorpanel 14, and are connected to the computer 36 and the power supply,after having passed inside of the door panel 14 and beneath the windowglass 118.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, on the outside of the coverportion 62, there is provided a lengthy protector 94 formed with arubber material or a soft and elastically deformable synthetic resinhaving a rigidity lower than the cover portion 62. The protector 94comprises a holding portion 96 in a substantially cylindrical shapealong the longitudinal direction. The size of the inner diameter of theholding portion 96 is substantially the same as the size of the outerdiameter of the cover portion 62, to thereby hold the sensor body 61inserted therein. Actually, therefore, when the holding portion 96 iselastically deformed due to external pressure, the cover portion 62 iselastically deformed due to receiving external pressure indirectly. Froma position on an outer periphery of the holding portion 96, anattachment portion 98 is formed so as to protrude outward in the radialdirection. As shown in FIG. 4. the attachment portion 98 is formed so asto be substantially the same along the longitudinal direction of theholding portion 96. Also an attachment groove 100 open toward a sideopposite to the holding portion 96 is formed in the attachment portion98. From one of inner walls facing each other of the attachment groove100, a clamping piece 102 is formed so as to protrude toward the otherinner wall, and when a bracket 104 in a plate form having asubstantially an L-shaped cross-section and fixed to the inside of thedoor panel 14 (to be more specific, on the inside face of the innerplate 114) is made to enter the attachment groove 100, the clampingpiece 102 is elastically deformed, and due to the restoringforce(elasticity) thereof, the bracket 104 is pushed towards the otherinner wall in the attachment groove 100 to thereby be clamped betweenthe clamping piece 120 and the other inner wall. The pressure sensitivesensor 60 is thereby fixed to the door panel 14.

In the present embodiment, the cover portion 62 and the protector 94 arestructured by separate bodies, but the cover portion 62 and theprotector 94 may be integrally formed (i.e., the attachment portion 98may be formed, at a part on the outer periphery of the cover portion 62.In this case, since the protector 94 is not provided separately, thenumber of parts decreases, and since a step for inserting the sensorbody 61 into the holding portion 96 can be omitted, the number of stepsalso decrease.

Next is a description of operation and effects of the presentembodiment.

With this automatic sliding door device 10, when the operation switch 52is operated to drive the slide actuator 34, in a state where the doorpanel 14 closes the opening 20, the drive roller 30 rotates to rotatethe endless belt 32, and the endless belt 32 pulls the bracket 22 towardthe rear of the vehicle 12, to thereby move the roller 24 along theguide rail 26. With the movement of the roller 24, the roller (notshown) of the bracket 46 moves along the guide rail 48. The door panel14 thereby slides towards the rear of the vehicle 12. Here, since theguide rail 26 and the guide rail 48 are curved inward in the vehiclewidth direction of the vehicle 12 at the respective front ends thereof,the roller 24 of the bracket 22 and the roller of the bracket 46 moveoutward in the vehicle width direction for awhile when moving backward.By this movement outward in the vehicle width direction, the door panel14 can be positioned outside in the vehicle width direction from thesidewall 18 or the vehicle 16 and slide rearward on the outside of theside wall 18.

On the other hand, when the operation switch 52 is operated to drive theslide actuator 34, in a state where the opening 20 is opened, the driveroller 30 rotates in the direction opposite to the direction when thedoor panel 14 is opened to rotate the endless belt 32, and the endlessbelt 32 pulls the bracket 22 toward the front of the vehicle 12. Thedoor panel 14 thereby slides toward the front of the vehicle. In thiscase, when the slide motor 40 starts driving, the position detectiondevice 44 starts to detect the amount the rotation axis of the slidemotor 40, rotates to thereby calculate the position of the door panel 14sequentially. Then, the door panel 14 moves inward in the vehicle widthdirection of the vehicle, along the curve of the guide rail 48, whilesubstantially facing the opening 20. When the position detection device44 detects the rotation of the rotation axis of the slide motor 40 ofuntil just before the door panel 14 completely closes the opening 20,the computer 36 operates the closure driver 58 of the closure actuator56 to drive the closure motor 59. The closure motor 59 operates the lockmechanism for locking the door panel 14, as well as guides the doorpanel 14 to a position where the door panel 14 can be locked by the lockmechanism. As a result, when the door panel 14 completely closes theopening 20, the lock mechanism locks the door panel 14, and restrictsmovement of the door panel 14 in the direction of opening the doorpanel, unless a predetermined opening operation is performed.

Here, if a foreign object which may be an obstacle to the door panel 14sliding toward the front of the vehicle 12 is present on a locus ofsliding of the door panel 14, and when a moving direction side endportion of the door panel 14, (i.e., the front end portion of the doorpanel 14) is about to abut against the foreign object, the foreignobject abuts against the pressure sensitive sensor 60 provided at thefront end portion of the door panel 14. At this time, since the pressuresensitive sensor 60 pushes the foreign object towards the front due tothe sliding of the door panel 14, a pushing reaction force from theforeign object acts on the pressure sensitive sensor 60. When thepushing reaction force makes the holding portion 96 of the protector 94elastically deform to thereby indirectly elastically deform the coverportion 62 of the sensor body 61, the electrode 66 or the electrode 70is brought into contact with the electrode 68 or the electrode 72 tothereby be short-circuited. As described above, in this state, thecurrent flowing in the circuit of FIG. 7 flows without passing throughthe resistor 74, hence the current value increases, and the currentdetection element 106 outputs a signal. The computer 36 that receivedthe signal from the current detection element 106 operates the slidedriver 38 to inversely drive the slide motor 40 in reverse. The doorpanel 14 thereby starts sliding rearward, so that a foreign object canbe prevented from becoming caught in the door panel 14.

As described above, since the detection of a foreign object in thisautomatic sliding door device 10 is performed by detecting the pushingreaction force from the foreign object acting on the pressure sensitivesensor 60, the accuracy in detecting a foreign object basically does nothave any relation to the sliding speed of the door panel 14 or theinclined state of the vehicle. Therefore, a foreign object can beprevented from becoming caught in the door panel, in a state where thesliding speed of the door panel 14 is accelerated just after havingstarted driving of the slide motor 40 in order to slide the door panel14 forward, or in a state where the slide motor 40 stops or isdecelerating to decelerate the sliding speed of the door panel 14, justbefore the door panel 14 completely closes the opening 20. Inparticular, a thin or small foreign object can be reliably preventedfrom becoming caught in the door panel in a state just before the doorpanel 14 completely closes the opening 20.

By the way, with this automatic sliding door device 10, as describedabove, the code 80 is connected at the lower end portion of the pressuresensitive sensor 60, and the code 80 is pulled into the inside of thedoor panel 14, through the circular hole 110 formed at a position lowerthan the lower end of the pressure sensitive sensor at the front edgeportion of the door panel 14. Hence, compared to a case where the code80 is connected at the upper end portion of the door panel 14 and ispassed through the upper side of the door panel 14 (for example, withinthe door frame 116), the degree of freedom in the disposed position ofthe code 80 at the time of providing the code in a prescribed locationis higher, and the management of the code 80 becomes easier. Hence, thenumber of steps required for providing the code in a prescribed locationis reduced, enabling cost reduction.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1, since a service hole 122 for providing awindow regulator or the like or for a maintenance service is ordinarilyformed on a lower end side of the inner side (that is, the inner plate114) of the door panel 14, when the code 80 is moved around within thedoor panel 14, the service hole 122 can be utilized, and the workabilityduring disposed can be improved in this sense.

Furthermore, since the code 80 is connected at the lower end portion ofthe pressure sensitive sensor 60, the connecting portion is located at aposition lower than a line of vision of a person passing through theopening 20. Therefore, the external appearance (i.e., look) is notdamaged, even without shielding a connection region of the pressuresensitive sensor 60 and the code 80.

Meanwhile, since the upper half of the human body is wider than the areaaround the feet due to the breadth of shoulders, if it is assumed thatif a passenger touches the door which is sliding forward when getting inand out through the opening 20, the upper half of the passenger's bodytouches the door panel 14 first. Here, since the connecting portion ofthe pressure sensitive sensor 60 and the code 80 is located at the lowerend portion of the pressure sensitive sensor 60, it is possible to setthe foreign object detection range, which depends on the pressuresensitive sensor 60, to as close as possible to the upper end portion ofthe front end portion of the door panel 14. Therefore, with thisautomatic sliding door device 10, a passenger having touched the doorpanel 14 can be reliably detected.

Incidentally, the present embodiment has a structure in which thepresent invention is applied to the automatic sliding door device 10 ofthe vehicle 12. However, it is a matter of course that the presentinvention can be widely applied to an opening/closing apparatus such asa normal automatic door or the like, in addition to the automaticsliding door device 10 of the vehicle 12, and the present invention maybe applied to an automatic door of a building, a door of an elevator, adoor of a railway vehicle or the like.

Moreover, with the present embodiment, a pressure sensitive sensor 60 ofa type in which four electrodes 66 to 72 are helically provided withinthe cover portion 62 is used, but the pressure sensitive sensor is notlimited to this structure, and any sensor having a structure in whichpresence of a foreign object can be detected by means of a pushingreaction force from the foreign object may be used.

Further, with the present embodiment, the structure is such that thedetection of a foreign object is performed only by the pressuresensitive sensor 60, but for example, a foreign object may be detectednot only by the pressure sensitive sensor 60, but also by detecting anoverload acting on the slide motor 40 at the time when a foreign objectis caught in the door.

In addition, with the present embodiment, the structure is such that thecode 80 is inserted inside of the door panel 14 from the circular hole110, but for example, a lower end side of the pressure sensitive sensor60 may be inserted inside of the door panel 14 from the circular hole110, and the pressure sensitive sensor 60 and the code 80 may beconnected within the door panel 14.

Meanwhile, with the present embodiment, the structure is such thatexternal shape of the mold 108 is made larger than an external shape ofthe end portion in the longitudinal direction of the protector 94, andnot only the end portion of the sensor body 61 but also the end portionof the protector 94 are enclosed within the mold 108; however, structureof the mold 108 is not limited thereto, and for example, as shown inFIG. 12, the end portion of the sensor body 61 by itself may be sealedby the mold 132. Here, in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, there is shown an exampleof an insertion method when the sensor body 61 having a structure inwhich only the end portion of the sensor body 61 is sealed by the mold132 is inserted into the holding portion 96 of the protector 94. Belowis a brief description of this insertion method.

As shown in FIG. 13, in this modification example, the size of the outerdiameter of the mold 132 provided at both ends in the longitudinaldirection of the sensor body 61 (only one end is shown in FIG. 13) islarger than that of the inner diameter in a natural condition where anexternal force is not acting on the holding portion 96 of the protector94, thereby sealing the end portions in the longitudinal direction ofthe cover portion 62 which structures the sensor body 61.

Of the both ends in the longitudinal direction of the sensor body 61provided with the mold 132, the lower end portion thereof in thelongitudinal direction located at a lower position in a state where thepressure sensitive sensor 60 is attached to the vehicle 12, is pressedinto the inside of the holding portion 96 from the upper end side in thelongitudinal direction located at an upper position in a state where thepressure sensitive sensor 60 is attached to the vehicle 12.

Then, as shown in FIG. 14, from this state, one or a plurality of (inthis example, two) air injection hoses 134 are inserted from the upperend portion in the longitudinal direction of the protector 94 to theinside of the holding portion 96.

The air injection hose 134 is connected to a compressor 136 at a bottomend thereof, and air sent out from the compressor 136 is jetted from atip end thereof. As described above, since the size of the outerdiameter of the mold 132 is larger than that of the inner diameter ofthe holding portion 96 in a natural condition, in the state where thelower end portion in the longitudinal direction of the sensor body 61 ispressed into the inside of the holding portion 96, an innercircumferential portion of the holding portion 96 adheres to the outerperipheral portion of the mold 132. Also, since the inner diameter ofthe holding portion 96 and the outer diameter of the cover portion 62are substantially the same, the mold 132 protrudes from the coverportion 62 in a flanged state toward the outside in the radial directionof the cover portion 62, as shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14. Accordingly,the air jetted from the tip end of the air injection hose 134 pushes aportion of the mold 132 that is protruding from the cover portion 62outward in the radial direction thereof toward the lower end portion inthe longitudinal direction of the protector 94. The mold 132 movestoward the lower end portion in the longitudinal direction of theprotector 94 together with the cover portion 62 by means of a pushingforce from the air, to thereby insert the sensor body 61 into the insideof the holding portion 96 of the protector 94.

With the insertion method described above, since the sensor body 61 isinserted into the inside of the holding portion 96 of the protector 94by means of air pressure, even if the outer shape of the mold 132 islarger than the inner diameter of the holding portion 96, it is veryeasy to insert the sensor body 61 into the inside of the holding portion96.

<Second Embodiment>

Next is a description of another embodiment of the present invention. Inthe following description of each embodiment, an element that isbasically the same as that of the first embodiment or of the embodimentprevious to the embodiment being described is given the same referencenumeral as that used in the first embodiment or previous embodiment, anddescription thereof is omitted.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing a structure of a main part of anautomatic sliding door device 150 as an automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to a second embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 16 shows a structure of a main part of the automatic sliding doordevice 150 in a vertical cross-section.

As shown in these figures, a lower end portion of a cover portion 62which structures a pressure sensitive sensor 60 in the automatic slidingdoor device 150 is a curved portion 152 which is curved toward a frontend portion of a door panel 14. Moreover, a tip end side of the curvedportion 152 is passed through a circular hole 110 formed on the doorpanel 14 and is received within the door panel 14, that is, between anouter plate 112 and an inner plate 114 which structure the door panel14.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 15, a grommet 154 formed with a rubbermaterial or a soft and elastically deformable synthetic resin in asubstantially ring shape or cylindrical shape is fitted in the circularhole 110 formed on the door panel 14, and the curved portion 152described above passes through the grommet 154 in a state where an outerperipheral portion thereof adheres to the inner circumference of thegrommet 154.

On the other hand, with this automatic sliding door device 150, there isprovided a support member (not shown) having a similar structure as thatof the support member 86 of the automatic sliding door device 10according to the first embodiment. The support member is enclosed withinthe mold 158 formed with a synthetic resin or a rubber material.

However, in contrast to the mold 108 of the automatic sliding doordevice 10 according to the first embodiment, this mold 158 is disposedwithin the door panel 14, to thereby seal the tip end of the curvedportion 152 of the cover portion 52 (i.e., the lower end portion of thecover portion 62) which has passed through the above-described grommet154 and the circular hole 110 within the door panel 14.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 15 and FIG. 16, the automatic sliding doordevice 150 is provided with a cover 156 attached to the front endportion of the door panel 14. The cover 156 is open at an end portion onan upper side and at an end portion facing the front end portion of thedoor panel 14, in a state where it is attached to the front end portionof the door panel 14, and a protector 94 enters from the upper open endof the cover 156 so that a lower end portion of the protector 94 isreceived within the cover 156. Furthermore, the curved portion 152 ofthe cover portion 62 pulled out from the lower end portion of theprotector 94 passes through the grommet 154 via the open end of thecover 156 facing the front end portion of the door panel 14.

That is to say, when comparing this automatic sliding door device 150with the automatic sliding door device 10 according to the firstembodiment, though there is a difference in that the curved portion 152of the cover portion 62 passes though the circular hole 110 instead ofthe code 80, there is no difference in that the leads 82, 84 areconnected with the electrodes 66, 72 at the lower end side of the doorpanel 14. Therefore, even with this automatic sliding door device 150,operation and effects similar to those of the automatic sliding doordevice 10 according to the first embodiment can be performed andobtained.

Furthermore, the automatic sliding door device 150 is different from theautomatic sliding door device 10 according to the first embodiment inthat the curved portion 152 on the lower end side of the cover portion62 passes through the circular hole 110 via the grommet 154 and isconnected to the code 80 via the support member within the door panel14. Hence, the support member, which is a connecting portion forconnecting the leads 82, 84 of the code 80 and the electrodes 66, 72, aswell as the mold 158 enclosing the support member are not exposedoutside of the door panel 14. Therefore, contact of the leads 82, 84 ofthe code 80, the support member and the mold 158 with a foreign objectoutside the door panel 14 can be prevented, and disconnection caused bya contact of the leads 82, 84 of the code 80, the support member and themold 158 with a foreign object can reliably prevent a failure or thelike.

Since the leads 82, 84 of the code 80 and the electrodes 66, 72 areconnected via the support member within the door panel 14, a complicatedmanagement operation of the leads 82 and 84, such as passing the leads82, 84 through the through hole 110, is basically not required, at thetime of connection or of a maintenance service. Thereby, workability inan assembly step can be improved, enabling reduction of assembly cost.

Moreover, as described above, with the automatic sliding door device150, since the outer peripheral portion of the curved portion 152adheres to the inner circumference of the grommet 154, infiltration ofwater or the like via the through hole 110 into the inside of the doorpanel 14 can be prevented.

Furthermore, with the automatic sliding door device 150, since thecurved portion 152 is covered with the cover 156, a foreign object canbe prevented from touching the curved portion 152 by means of the cover156 (that is, the curved portion 152 can be protected by the cover 156).

Also, the curved portion 152 is a portion where the cover portion 62 ispulled out from the protector 94, and by covering the curved portion 152with the cover 156, the external appearance of the door panel 14 can beimproved.

<Third Embodiment>

Next is a description of a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a structure of a mainpart of an automatic sliding door device 170 according to a thirdembodiment of the present invention.

As shown in this figure, the automatic sliding door device 170 isprovided with a grommet 172. The grommet 172 overall has a cylindricalshape having a bottom, and the size of the inner diameter thereof isapproximately the same as that of the outer diameter of a mold 158described above, so that the mold 158 can be inserted into the inside ofthe grommet 172. In this inserted state, the grommet 172 holds the mold158 by its own elasticity. Also, an open end of the grommet 172 isextended outward in the radial direction in a flanged state, and isfitted in an inner circumferential portion of a through hole 110 in astate where it covers the inner circumferential portion of the throughhole 110.

With the present embodiment having the above-described structure, notonly can the effect described in the second embodiment described abovebe obtained, but in addition, the mold 158 can be fixed to a door panel14 in a stable state, since the grommet 172 holds the mold 158. Hence,play of the mold due to vibrations during traveling of the vehicle 12 orat the time of opening/closing the door panel 14 can be prevented, tothereby prevent disconnection of the leads 82 and 84.

<Fourth Embodiment>

Next is a description of a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a structure of a mainpart of an automatic sliding door device 190 according to a fourthembodiment of the present invention.

As shown in this figure, the automatic sliding door device 190 is notprovided with a cover 156 used in the second and third embodiments, butinstead of the cover, it comprises an end protector 192. The endprotector 192 is formed with a rubber material or a synthetic resinmaterial substantially in a block shape with an external shape similarto that of the above-described cover 156. With the present embodiment,the shape of the end protector 192 is similar to that of the cover 156,but the shape of the end protector 192 is not limited to the shapesimilar to that of the cover 156. An insertion hole 194 is formed in theend protector 192, whose one end opens at an upper end portion of theend protector 192, and whose other end-opens at a rear end portion ofthe end protector 192. The insertion hole 194 has an inner diameterslightly larger than the external size of a cover portion 62, and acurved portion 152 of the cover portion 62 is inserted therein. The tipend side of the curved portion 152 is extended toward the inside of adoor panel 14, protruding from the other end of the insertion hole 194,and connected to leads 82, 84 of a code 80 via a connection memberprovided within a mold 158.

Meanwhile, a grommet portion 196 is formed around the other end of theinsertion hole of the end protector 192, and the grommet portion 196 isfitted to the inner circumference of a through hole 110 in a state whereit covers the inner circumference of the through hole 110.

With the present embodiment of the above-described structure, simply byinserting a portion pulled out from a lower end portion of the holdingportion 96 of the cover portion 62 (the protector 94) into the insertionhole 194, the portion inserted in the insertion hole 194 can be made thecurved portion 152 curved at a certain curvature, hence the curvedportion 152 can be easily formed. Moreover, as in the above-describedcover 156, contact of a foreign object with the curved portion 152 canbe prevented, to thereby protect the curved portion 152.

With the present embodiment, the structure is such that the curvedportion 152 of the cover portion 62 is inserted into the insertion hole194 formed in the end protector 192, but the structure may be such thatwhen the end protector 192 is formed, the curved portion 152 isinsert-molded.

<Fifth Embodiment>

Next is a description of a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a structure of an automaticsliding door device 210 as an automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

The automatic sliding door device 210 is provided with a protector 212as support means This protector 212 is formed with a synthetic resinmaterial having a higher rigidity than that of a cover portion 62, andcomprises a holding portion 214 in a concave shape opening toward thefront of a vehicle 12 in an attached state. The radius of curvature ofan opening portion of the holding portion is substantially the same asthat of the outer peripheral portion of the cover portion 62, so thatsubstantially a vehicle rear side of the cover portion 62 can be coveredalong the longitudinal direction of the cover portion 62. Further, on avehicle front side of the holding portion 214, a soft portion 216 formedwith a synthetic resin material having a lower rigidity than that of thecover portion 62 is provided. The soft portion 216 is in a concave shapeopening toward the rear of the vehicle 12 in an attached state, and theradius of curvature of this opening portion is also substantially thesame as that of an outer peripheral portion of the cover portion 62, andthe holding portion 214 and the soft portion 216 form a substantiallycylindrical shape with the inner diameter being substantially equal tothe outer diameter of the cover portion 62. The above-described coverportion 62 is held in a state of being inserted into the inside of acylindrical body formed by the holding portion 214 and the soft portion216.

On the contrary, an attachment leg 218 is formed as a support portion onan outer peripheral portion of the holding portion 214, which outerperipheral portion is on the side opposite to the soft portion 216. Theattachment leg 218 is long along the longitudinal direction of theholding portion 214, and a section thereof is substantially in arectangular shape with the longer side being along the forward andrearward direction of the vehicle (that is, along the extendingdirection from the holding portion 214). The attachment leg 218 isattached to a bracket 220 provided at a front end portion of the doorpanel 14, and is supported by the door panel 14 via the bracket 220.

The bracket 220 comprises a plate-shaped fixing portion 222 having alonger side substantially along the vertical direction of the vehicle12, and is fixed to the front end portion of the door panel 14 by meansof fixation by welding or by means of joining with a bolt, rivet or thelike. One end in the width direction of the fixing portion 222 is aclamping portion 224 bent substantially in an L-shape and extendedsubstantially towards the front of the vehicle 12. On one end face inthe thickness direction of the clamping portion 224, a plate-likeclamping plate 226 having a longer side substantially along the verticaldirection of the vehicle 12 is provided, as in the fixing portion 222.

The clamping plate 226 is disposed substantially parallel with theclamping portion 224 along the vertical direction of the vehicle 12, ina state where one end thereof in the thickness direction faces one endin the thickness direction of the clamping portion 224. Further, one endin the width direction of the clamping plate 226 is bent substantiallyin an L-shape toward the direction approaching the clamping portion 224,and an end portion thereof is bent substantially in an L-shape towardthe rear of the vehicle 12, and is mounted in a fixed condition to theclamping portion 224 by welding or the like. Here, an interval betweenthe clamping portion 224 and the clamping plate 226 is substantially thesame as the width of the above-described attachment leg 218, so that theattachment leg 218 can be inserted between the clamping portion 224 andthe clamping plate 226. Further, a protrusion 228 protruding toward theclamping portion 224 is formed in the clamping plate 226. The protrusion228 corresponds to a concave portion 230 formed on one end portion inthe width direction of the attachment leg 218. When the attachment leg218 is inserted between the clamping portion 224 and the clamping plate226, the protrusion 228 enters into the inside of the concave portion230, to thereby restrict movement of the attachment leg 218 in theinsertion direction and in the reverse direction thereof.

Furthermore, an adhesive 232 is applied in a vicinity of the bentportion of the clamping plate 226 that is between the clamping portion224 and the clamping plate 226. In a state where the attachment leg 218is inserted, an end portion of the attachment leg 218 on the sideopposite the holding portion 214 is brought into contact with theadhesive 232 before curing, and the attachment leg 218 is held by theadhesive 232 by curing the adhesive 232.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 20, the inside of the attachment leg 218 isa hollow accommodating portion 234. The accommodating portion 234 isformed along the longitudinal direction of the attachment leg 218 (thatis, in the direction along the vertical direction of the vehicle 12),and is open at both ends thereof. As shown in FIG. 19, above-describedleads 82, 84 are inserted from one of the open ends of the accommodatingportion 234, and the other ends of the leads 82, 84 are provided in aprescribed location along the accommodating portion 234, toward theother open end of the accommodating portion 234.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 19, a notch portion 236 is formed in a middleportion in the longitudinal direction of the attachment leg 218 (thatis, in the direction along the vertical direction of the vehicle 12),and the accommodating portion 234 communicates with the outside not onlyin the opening portions of both ends in the longitudinal direction ofthe attachment leg 218, but also in the opening at this notch portion236. As shown in FIG. 19, the notch portion 236 corresponds to a notchportion 238 formed in the clamping plate 226, and corresponds to a pore240 formed in the front end portion of the door panel 14 as well as to apore 242 formed in the clamping plate 226 so as to communicate with thepore 240 in a state where the bracket 220 is fixed to the front endportion of the door panel 14. In a state where the attachment leg 218 isinserted between the clamping portion 224 and the clamping plate 226,the notch portion 236 is located at a position along the axial directionof the pores 242, 240. From the notch portion 236, the leads 82, 84provided in the inside of the accommodating portion 234 are pulled out,and are passed through the notch portion 238 and the pores 242 and 240,to thereby be provided in the inside of the door panel 14.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 21, an end portion in thelongitudinal direction of the protector 212 is covered with a cover 244,and in particular, at the end portion on the side where the leads 82, 84are pulled out, the folded portion of the leads 82, 84 and theconnecting portions of the leads 82, 84 and the pressure sensitivesensor 60 are protected by the cover 244.

With the present embodiment of the above-described structure, since theleads 82, 84 are connected at end portions in the longitudinal directionof the electrodes 66 and 72, the leads 82, 84 can be brought intocontact with each other in substantially the entire area in thelongitudinal direction of the electrodes 66 and 72, excluding both endsin the longitudinal direction of the electrodes 66 and 72 (in otherwords, a dead zone, where even if a pushing reaction force acts thereon,they are not brought into contact with each other, is not formed in amiddle portion in the longitudinal direction of the electrodes 66 and72). Hence, a pushing reaction force from the above-described obstacleacting on the front end portion of the door panel 14 can be reliablydetected.

Moreover, one end portion in the longitudinal direction of theseelectrodes 66 and 72, that is, the leads 82, 84 connected to theelectrode 66 and the electrode 72, respectively, in the vicinity of thelower end of the front end portion of the door panel 14 are extendedapproximately up to a central portion in the vertical direction of thedoor panel 14. Here, the leads 82, 84 are folded back at a side of anend portion in the longitudinal direction of the cover portion 62, areaccommodated in the accommodating portion 234 formed in the attachmentleg 218, and are guided to substantially a central portion in thevertical direction of the door panel 14, to enter into the door panel 14from the notch portion 236, via the notch portion 236 and the pores 242,240. Furthermore, since the portion of the leads 82, 84 folded back atthe side of the end portion in the longitudinal direction of the coverportion 62 is covered with the cover 244, the leads 82, 84 are basicallynot exposed outside. Hence, the external appearance of the door panel 14in the vicinity of the front end portion is improved, and foreignobject, including an obstacle, or a body of a passenger of the vehicle12 do not come in direct contact with the leads 82, 84. Accordingly,problems such as disconnection caused by a foreign object or apassenger's body of the vehicle 12 coming in contact with the leads 82,84 to thereby pull the leads 82, 84, can be reliably prevented.

Furthermore, the leads 82, 84 accommodated in the accommodating portion234 in the attachment leg 218 are pulled out from the notch portion 236,and guided to the inside of the door panel 14. Therefore, even if thepore 240 for communicating the inside and outside of the door panel isformed in any position in the vertical direction of the front endportion of the door panel 14, simply by forming a notch portion 236 bynotching the attachment leg 218 properly in accordance with the positionof the pore 240, the leads 82, 84 can be pulled out from the notchportion 236 and guided into the door panel 14. Hence, even in a vehiclein which the position of the pore 240 is different, a pressure sensitivesensor 60 can be installed on the front end portion of the door panel14.

In addition, since the accommodating portion 234 is formed in theattachment leg 218 for attaching a pressure sensitive sensor 60 to thefront end portion of the door panel 14, the protector 212 can be madesmall (narrow).

Moreover, the synthetic resin material which forms the protector 212 maybe basically one kind, hence production of the protector 212 is easy,and production costs of the automatic sliding door device 190 can bereduced.

<Sixth Embodiment>

Next is a description of a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view showing a structure of an automaticsliding door device 260 as an automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. As shown inthis figure, with the automatic sliding door device 260 according to thepresent embodiment, the structure of an attachment leg 264 as a supportportion of a protector 262 is different from the attachment leg 218 ofthe protector 212 of the automatic sliding door device 210 according tothe fifth embodiment.

That is to say, though an accommodating portion 266 is formed in theattachment leg 264, which corresponds to the accommodating portion 234of the attachment leg 218 in the fifth embodiment, no gap is formedbetween an outer peripheral portion of the accommodating portion 266 andan inner circumference of leads 82, 84, and in fact, the leads 82, 84are provided in the attachment leg 264 in a buried state. As describedabove, as a method for forming the protector 262, there can be mentioneda method of forming the attachment leg 264 while arranging the leads 82,84 at a position where the attachment leg 264 is formed, when theprotector 262 is formed together with a holding portion 214 and a softportion 216, and solidifying a periphery of the leads 82, 84 with asynthetic resin material, but other methods may be used.

Moreover, the attachment leg 264 is provided with a protrusion 268toward a side in the width direction, and when the attachment leg 264 isfitted in between a clamping portion 224 and a clamping plate 226, theprotrusion 268 is elastically deformed, to thereby be secured betweenthe clamping portion 224 and the clamping plate 226 by means of arestoring force of the protrusion 268.

Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 22, the protrusion 268 may be formedspecially so as to have a section in a shape of trapezoid or triangle.However, if as shown in FIG. 23, for example, a synthetic resin materialfor forming the attachment leg 264 is deposited around the leads 82, 84,only the circumference of the leads 82, 84 has a wider width than otherportions. This portion of a wider width may be used as the protrusion268.

The end portions of the leads 82, 84 provided in the attachment leg 264in a buried state (i.e., accommodated in the accommodating portion 266)are pulled out toward the outside in the longitudinal direction from theend portion in the longitudinal direction of the protector 262, as inthe fifth embodiment, and connected to the electrode 66 and theelectrode 72, respectively. Here, as a method of pulling out the leads82, 84 from the protector 262, there can be mentioned a method in which,in the method of forming the attachment leg 264 while solidifying theperiphery of the above-described leads 82, 84 with a synthetic resinmaterial, portions from the end portions in the longitudinal directionto suitable positions toward the center in the longitudinal direction ofthe leads 82, 84 is extended without solidifying with a synthetic resinmaterial or a method in which the protector 262 is cut substantiallyalong the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, whileleaving the portions from the end portions in the longitudinal directionto a suitable positions toward the center in the longitudinal directionof the leads 82, 84 provided in the attachment leg 264 in a buriedstate, but other methods may be used.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 23, a notch portion 236 is formed in amiddle portion in the longitudinal direction of the protector 262. Thenotch portion 236 is basically the same as the notch portion 236 formedin the attachment leg 218 in the fifth embodiment, and the other endportions in the longitudinal direction of the leads 82, 84 are pulledout from this notch portion 236. However, as shown in FIG. 23, the leads82, 84 are cut at this notch portion 236, and the other end portions inthe longitudinal direction of the leads 82, 84 via the notch portion arein the buried state in the other end side in the longitudinal directionof the accommodating portion 266 via the notch portion 236, and the endportions of the leads 82, 84 pulled out from the notch portion 236 areconnected to other leads to thereby be indirectly connected to the powersupply.

As described above, with the automatic sliding door device 260, thestructure is substantially the same as that of the fifth embodiment,except that the embodiment of the accommodating portion is differentfrom the accommodating portion 234 in the fifth embodiment. Therefore,the same operation as that of the fifth embodiment can be performed, andthe same effects as that of the fifth embodiment can be obtained.

Moreover, with the automatic sliding door device 260, as describedabove, when the protector 262 is formed together with the holdingportion 214 and the soft portion 216, the leads 82, 84 are disposed at aposition where the attachment leg 264 is formed, and the periphery ofthe leads 82, 84 is solidified with a synthetic resin material.Accordingly, the leads 82, 84 can be provided in the attachment leg 264in a buried state (that is, the leads 82, 84 can be accommodated in theaccommodating portion 266). Therefore, if the structure is such that theprotector 262 is formed sufficiently longer than the length in thevertical direction of the front end portion of the door panel 14, and isused by being cut suitably according to the length in the verticaldirection of the front end portion of the door panel 14, even if thelength in the vertical direction of the front end portion of the doorpanel 14 is different for each vehicle type, the protector 262 can beeasily made to correspond to them, enabling cost reduction.

With the present embodiment, structure is such that the remainder of theleads 82, 84 on the other end side in the longitudinal direction of theprotector 262 via the notch portion 236 after cutting (that is, theleads 82, 84 on the other end side in the longitudinal direction via thenotch portion 236) is provided in the accommodating portion 266 in aburied state. However, the notch portion 236 may be formed in theattachment leg 264 so as not to cut the leads 82, 84, and the leads 82,84 on the other end side in the longitudinal direction via the notchportion 236 may be pulled out from the accommodating portion 266 to beused. In this case, the unillustrated other leads described above arenot required, or even if they are used, the length thereof can be madeshort, enabling further cost reduction.

Industrial Applicability

As described above, the automatic opening-and-closing device accordingto the present invention is preferable as an automatic sliding doordevice for sliding the door panel to open/close a gate for getting onand off a vehicle. However, the automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to the present invention can be applied to doors of vehiclesof a railway or the like, or for example, to an automatic door in abuilding or a door of an elevator or the like, other than the vehicledoor.

What is claimed is:
 1. An automatic opening-and-closing devicecomprising: a moving body which moves for opening/closing substantiallyhorizontally by means of a driving force from a driving means; apressure sensitive sensor which is provided along a vertical directionof the moving body at a moving direction side end portion of the movingbody, comprising a plurality of electrodes which are respectivelyelongated along the vertical direction and which are disposed with gapstherebetween, the pressure sensitive sensor detecting an externalpressure due to the plurality of electrodes bending and contacting eachother; an elongated connection means, one end of which is electricallyconnected to ones of longitudinal direction end portions of theplurality of electrodes said connection means having a part which turnsand then extends along the vertical direction; support means having aholding portion for holding the pressure sensitive sensor along thelongitudinal direction of the plurality of electrodes, and having asupport portion which is mounted to and supported at a predeterminedsensor mounting position, wherein the support portion has anaccommodating portion which accommodates a portion of the connectionmeans and guides the portion of the connection means to otherlongitudinal direction end sides of the plurality of electrodes; andcontrol means for controlling driving of the driving means, said controlmeans being connected to the pressure sensitive sensor via theconnection means and controlling driving of the driving means when thepressure sensitive sensor senses an external pressure.
 2. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 1, wherein the connectionmeans is connected to a lower end portion of the pressure sensitivesensor.
 3. An automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 2,wherein the connection means passes through an interior portion of themoving body, and passes through a through hole formed at a lower endside of the moving direction side end portion of the moving body, and isconnected to the lower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor. 4.An automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 3, whereinthe moving body is provided with a window glass, and the lower endportion of the pressure sensitive sensor is located at a position lowerthan a lower end portion of the window glass.
 5. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 2, wherein the pressuresensitive sensor is provided with an outer cover portion which ishollow, the plurality of electrodes being accommodated at an interiorportion of the outer cover portion, a length of the outer cover portionbeing along the vertical direction of the moving body, and the outercover portion being elastically deformable due to an external force of apredetermined magnitude or greater.
 6. An automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to claim 5, wherein the connection means is passedthrough an interior portion of the moving body, and passes through athrough hole formed at a lower end side of the moving direction side endportion of the moving body, and is connected to at least two electrodesof the plurality of electrodes pulled out from a lower end portion ofthe outer cover portion.
 7. An automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to claim 6, wherein the moving body is provided with a windowglass, and the lower end portion of the pressure sensitive sensor islocated at a position lower than a lower end portion of the windowglass.
 8. An automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim 5,wherein the connection means is disposed along the moving direction sideend portion of the moving body, a lower end portion of the connectionmeans is connected to at least two electrodes of a plurality ofelectrodes pulled out from a lower end portion of the outer coverportion, the moving direction side end portion of the moving body passesbetween an upper end portion and a lower end portion of the outer coverportion, and another end is connected to the control means via aninterior portion of the moving body.
 9. An automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to claim 8, wherein the connection means is embedded inadvance in the accommodating portion, and the connection means isintegral with the support means.
 10. An automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to claim 8, wherein a cover is provided so as tocorrespond to longitudinal direction end portions of the plurality ofelectrodes, and covers a portion of the connection means exposed fromthe accommodating portion.
 11. An automatic opening-and-closing deviceaccording to claim 8, wherein the moving body is provided with a windowglass, and the connection means passes through the moving body at aposition lower than the window glass.
 12. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 2, wherein the connectionmeans is disposed along the moving direction side end portion of themoving body, and one end is connected to the pressure sensitive sensorand passes through the moving direction side end portion of the movingbody between an upper end portion and a lower end portion of thepressure sensitive sensor, and another end is connected to the controlmeans via the interior portion of the moving body.
 13. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 12, wherein the connectionmeans is embedded in advance in the accommodating portion, and theconnection means is integral with the support means.
 14. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 12, wherein a cover isprovided so as to correspond to longitudinal direction end portions ofthe plurality of electrodes, and covers a portion of the connectionmeans exposed from the accommodating portion.
 15. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 12, wherein the movingbody is provided with a window glass, and the connection means is passedthrough the moving body at a position lower than the window glass. 16.An automatic opening-and-closing device comprising: a moving body whichmoves for opening/closing substantially horizontally by means of adriving force from a driving means; a pressure sensitive sensor providedalong the vertical direction at a moving direction side end portion ofthe moving body, and sensing a pressure in a direction opposite to themoving direction; control means for controlling driving of the drivingmeans, in a state in which the pressure sensitive sensor senses anexternal pressure; and connection means connected to a lower end portionof the pressure sensor and connecting the pressure sensitive sensor tothe control means, wherein the lower end portion of the pressuresensitive sensor is curved toward the moving direction side end portionof the moving body, and a curved portion passes through a through holeformed at a lower end side of the moving direction side end portion ofthe moving body and is disposed within the moving body and connected tothe connection means within the moving body.
 17. An automaticopening-and-closing device according to claim 16, wherein the movingbody is provided with a window glass, and the lower end portion of thepressure sensitive sensor is located at a position lower than a lowerend portion of the window glass.
 18. An automatic opening-and-closingdevice according to claim 16, wherein the pressure sensitive sensorincludes: an outer cover portion which is hollow, a length of the outercover portion being along the vertical direction of the moving body, andthe outer cover portion being elastically deformable due to an externalforce of a predetermined magnitude or more; and a plurality of elongatedelectrodes disposed along a longitudinal direction of the outer coverportion within the outer cover portion and so as to be spaced apart fromeach other along a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction ofthe outer cover portion, the plurality of elongated electrodes beingconnected in series and deforming as the outer cover portion elasticallydeforms.
 19. An automatic opening-and-closing device according to claim18, wherein the moving body is provided with a window glass, and a lowerend portion of the outer cover portion is located at a position lowerthan a lower end portion of the window glass.